Two female judges from Afghanistan's Supreme Court have been killed by unidentified gunmen, according to local police, the deaths adding to a wave of assassinations in Kabul, the capital, and other cities while the government and Taliban representatives hold peace talks in Qatar.
The two judges, who have not yet been named, were killed and their driver wounded in an attack at around 8:30am on Sunday, police said. The case is being investigated by security forces.
A spokesman for the Taliban said its fighters were not involved.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani issued a statement condemning attacks on civilians by the Taliban and other militant groups.
Ghani said "terror, horror and crime" was not a solution to Afghanistan's problem and beseeched the Taliban to accept "a permanent ceasefire".
Government officials, journalists, and activists have been targeted in recent months, stoking fear particularly in the capital Kabul.
The Taliban has denied involvement in some of the attacks, but has said its fighters would continue to "eliminate" important government figures, though not journalists or civil society members.
Rising violence has complicated US-brokered peace talks taking place in Doha as Washington withdraws troops.
Sources on both sides say negotiations are only likely to make substantive progress once President-elect Joe Biden takes office and makes his Afghan policy known.
The number of US troops in Afghanistan has been reduced to 2,500, the lowest level of American forces there since 2001, according to the Pentagon on Friday (local time).
Reuters
